This Bible Study course follows on from “Foundations Bible Study”, which should be read first.
Foundations Bible Study covered the basics of the Christin Faith, starting with an understanding of our salvation, the importance to every believer of studying the Bible, some keys to understanding the Bible, an outline of the church, and then on to the 6 ‘basic teachings’ listed in Hebrews 6;1-2 which the writer of Hebrews evidently regarded as of ‘fundamental importance’.
Hebrews 6:3, the every next verse, encourages us all not to stop here, but to ‘move forward to further understanding’ – so the Foundations course should be regarded as just the first step in our Christian walk and the pursuit of a deeper understating of the Bible, and through this of the person and the ways of our Lord and Saviour.
As stated before, growing in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ’ (2 Peter 3:18) – is a life-long process. We should never be content with our current knowledge or spiritual standing. This appears to be what Paul and Timothy had in mind when they wrote to the people in Philippi; Philippians 3:12 I don’t mean to say that I have already achieved these things or that I have already reached perfection. But I press on to possess that perfection for which Christ Jesus first possessed me. I would dearly like this to be able to say the same of my life, and to be able to look back one day and be satisfied that I has done everything that I could, with everything that had been entrusted to me, just like the faithful servants who invested the talents (bags of silver) in Mathew 25, and were called ‘good and faithful servants’.
This second series of teachings is aimed at increasing both our knowledge of the Word, and our faith in the Word, so that we have a firm foundation to stand on and are at the very least aware of the attacks that have been historically and are still currently, being levelled against the Word – its divine inspiration and the reliability of our current translations of it, so that we may indeed stand firm in our faith and conviction against all attacks. Paul encourages us several times in 1 & 2 Corinthians to ‘stand strong’, as in 1 Corinthians 15:1 Let me now remind you, dear brothers and sisters, of the Good News I preached to you before. You welcomed it then, and you still stand firm in it.
Pual in his letter to Titus said that his mission was to ‘proclaim the faith’, or in other words to announce the gospel of Jesus Christ, to teach them to know the truth, and to (practically) show them how to live Godly lives.
Titus 1:1 This letter is from Paul, a slave of God and an apostle of Jesus Christ. I have been sent to proclaim faith to those God has chosen and to teach them to know the truth that shows them how to live godly lives. 2 This truth gives them confidence that they have eternal life, which God -who does not lie – promised them before the world began.
One of the qualifications of leadership is that they have a strong faith in the Word, and that they are able to both encourage others with sound teaching of the Word, and to correct still others where their theology is incorrect – which I, for one, take it to include those with heretical or unorthodox views, or are from different religions. Hence the inclusion of a summary of beliefs of the historical heresies, the different denominations, and the major religions – forewarned is forearmed, to enable effective ministry when the need arises, with love and compassion for all, and as instructed by Paul says in 1 Thessalonians 5:14 ..Be patient with everyone.
Titus1:9 He must have a strong belief in the trustworthy message he was taught; then he will be able to encourage others with wholesome teaching and show those who oppose it where they are wrong.
Dr Brian Drury